Chirality of magnetoelectrodeposited Cu films

Cu films were electrodeposited under magnetic fields up to 5T perpendicular to the electrode surface. The surface morphology of the 5T-film had network structures, which could be caused by micro-MHD convection. Such magnetoelectrodeposited (MED) Cu films were employed as an electrode, and cyclic voltammograms were measured for the electrochemical reactions of an amino acid of alanine. Chiral behaviour was observed as an oxidation current difference between the enantiomers. The deposition condition dependence of the chirality was examined in various magnetic fields, electrodeposition potentials and electrode sizes. These results are discussed in connection with the micro-MHD and vertical MHD effects. The chiral response was durable for more than 10 cycles of successive voltammetric measurements of the enantiomers.